Bane
by InAStorm
Summary: Melody Shade was raised to fight supernatural creatures, particularly demons. But when she is forcibly sent to Earth to recognize their potential, what happens when she meets a certain young boy and his butler? Possible Sebastian/OC. Not sure if I'll continue this, but who knows?
1. Chapter 1

While the great city of London was fast asleep, Melody Shade stared out a window, looking down at its paved streets. Her dark, normally cold and calculating eyes were glazed over. The nineteen year old was, as usual, reminiscing about her lost past. A past she wasn't even sure she could get back.

_"What is this place? Why is everything so grey? Why are there so many people? Why is the ground so bumpy and hard?"_

_"This is called a city, young one. It is were a large number of humans reside and interact. You will be monitoring this area called London."_

She vigorously shook her head to clear the memory, her short dark brown hair becoming disheveled in the process. Suddenly, she couldn't stand to be inside any longer, wallowing in her memories. She abruptly stood up from her chair, and turned around to face the empty room.

"Peter," she spoke softly into the darkness.

Out of nowhere, a man materialized right next to her. "Yes, my lady?" He replied, bowing before her with the slightest trace of a smirk on his face. He was a tall, handsome man with short jet-black hair and dark brown, pitiless eyes. When he straightened up to look at her, he stood a good eight inches above her average height. He still wore that faintly amused, taunting expression.

"Fetch me my coat. I want to go on a walk." She said in an even tone, not at all perturbed by his sudden appearance.

"My lady, it's not advisable for you to wander the streets of London at night. There are many foul cretins who might attack you." The man replied, not once leaving his small sneer for a more concerned expression.

"You know perfectly well I am capable of defending myself."

"Very well. However, I would at least like to accompany you. It may convince some of the scum to stay away."

Melody thought for a moment, her eyes narrowing suspiciously. Noticing this, her demon sighed. While he had contracted with many humans in the past, they had all foolishly trusted him over time, many believing that they shared some sort of emotional connection. They started to personify him, some of the females (and a male) even going so far as to fall for him. She was the only one who had kept her wary behavior around him, even though it had been months. She was undoubtedly smarter than most humans he had encountered, which is why he was shocked when she even agreed to the contract in the first place.

"Alright," she finally sighed after a short pause. "But I expect you to keep off any imbeciles if they decide to assault me."

"Of course, my lady." He replied, bowing low once more and leaving to retrieve his mistress's coat.

Once her demon had left, she turned around to stare out the window one last time before brushing off dirt from her dress with her hands. Her hands brushed against her two long knives concealed inside hidden pockets that were sewn into her clothing. Her weapons, which also included her bow and katana that were currently stashed in her closet, were the only things that still connected her to her former life. She was thankful that Father had been gracious enough to let her keep them.

"_But not gracious enough to keep me from this stupid 'journey'." _She thought bitterly to herself.

Peter had returned with her long, black coat and proceeded to put it on her. She cringed slightly when he stepped closer, but quickly forced herself to relax. He sighed in annoyance and helped her put on the clothing, which effectively covered the brand on the inside of her forearm that she received when she made the contract. Her demon had the same one stamped on his right shoulder. It was an intricate swirling pattern with hundreds of spirals all incased in a circle.

"Thank you," she muttered stiffly and breezed past him on her way to the door.

Peter exhaled softly in the now empty room and slowly made his way to follow her.

T-T-T-T-T-T-T-T-T-T

The full moon illuminated the pair's path as they continued their stroll through the city. So far, the two of them had only seen a few drunks stumbling around, but no one had bothered them yet. They were silent as they walked, but it was a mutual silence. Even though they could've discussed the Jack the Ripper cases Melody was looking into, it wasn't easy to talk about a petty murder in front of a demon that could slay a hundred humans in the blink of an eye.

While they walked, Melody found her wandering mind inevitably going back to her past. It was no use trying to block the memories from her mind; the injustice of it all would always come flooding back to her. So engrossed in her own thoughts, she didn't even notice her demon stop and put an arm out in front of her until she ran into it.

"Wait," he muttered quietly. "I sense something."

Now that she had returned to the present, her honed skills noticed it too. "Another demon," she responded quietly, fingers ghosting over her blades ready to fight.

They looked forward for a few tense seconds until they saw it; two people in the distance that had rounded a street corner and were approaching them.

Suddenly she was walking briskly again, whispering out of the corner of her mouth, "Keep walking. It'll look suspicious if we just stand here."

"Of course my lady," he replied, easily catching up to her.

The closer the two got to the mysterious pair, the more she noted how unusual they looked. There was a small boy of about twelve or thirteen years with dark blue hair and an eye patch. He wore an expensive looking coat and an abnormally harsh and mature expression that one would not normally associate with someone of his age. Next to him was a tall man with messy black hair and malicious glint in his red-orange eyes. It was so painfully obvious that they were a demon and contractor that Melody giggled at the stupidity of the human race. How could the humans not notice?

Peter looked at his mistress with shock as they passed by the small boy and his demon. She rarely smiled, much less laughed. He already knew that she was unlike anyone else, but she still managed to surprise him with her actions.

Still walking, she was immersed in her own thoughts again. While a contracted demon was still something to be cautious of (as opposed to non-contracted demons, which should be taken care of as soon as one was spotted), it wouldn't attack unless its master commanded it too. And seeing as they were only walking, the little boy would have no reason to. However, she would of course plan an attack. Peter could distract the demon while she sprang up to slice his throat. She had the element of surprise, as most people would think she was incapable of fighting because she was a woman. She probably didn't have to worry about the boy; he looked like he had never fought a day in his life, although looks could be deceiving…

She stopped, noticing the absence of her demon from her side. She quickly spun around, pulling out her blades and prepared to fight until she saw the weirdest scene in front of her.

Peter looked like he was going to rip up the other demon to shreds. Melody could almost see the waves of spite rolling off of him. The boy was also staring at his demon, but with a look of utter confusion and annoyance.

Finally she looked at the demon stranger. She was surprised to see him staring straight at her, an unreadable expression on his face. So fixed was his stare that she was about to ask what the hell was going on when a wave of dizziness attacked her, making her fall onto her knees.

From the ground, she watched Peter spit at the black-haired demon and mutter, "Of course you would Malphas," before disappearing. Then, she blacked out.


	2. Chapter 2

**Hey there!**

**Thanks for still reading (that means you don't find it too terrible, right?). Here's the next chapter. Enjoy!  
**

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FLASHBACK

She had been drifting for almost a month now. She had no purpose, no real destination. Father had, hoping to get her to start a new life, transported her to France. But she found her feet leading her back to London, even though she knew it was against his wishes. Her mind had come to the conclusion that if she returned to the area that was once in her protection, then she would somehow be accepted again.

Progress was slow. She would walk in a daze for hours and hours with no sleep, pass out in some cheap inn for a whole day, wake up, and repeat the process. Of course, she could've just taken a train or even ordered a carriage; Father had made sure that she was well supplied with money. But she felt like this was some excursion she had to make on her own, by herself.

"_You need to go to Earth and understand demons. Your viewpoint of them is limited. You aren't like the others; you were raised to hate them. I can't let you be brainwashed any longer. Go and learn. Once you have, I'll let you return. If you choose to stay on Earth, that is fine as well." Father said from his bed, pain and sorrow evident._

"_I'm not being brainwashed! I know my duties as a Protector. You can't do this to me!" Melody yelled, caught between betrayal and shock._

"_Go."_

The next thing she knew, she was staring at a farm in the French countryside.

Tears welled up in her eyes. It seemed like it was happening every day now. If she wasn't a Protector, what was she? How was she supposed to "understand" demons? Demons were the evil spawn of the devil, only interested in feasting on human souls. What else was there to learn?

Weeks later, she reached the outskirts of London. When she finally stepped onto the busy and crowded streets, the reality of her demented ideals hit her. What did she expect when she returned? A welcoming party from the rest of the Protectors? Did she expect Father to come up to her and say, "Haha, we sure fooled you!"

No. She needed to get a hold of herself. She needed to settle down and come up with a plan.

No more hoping that this was some sort of practical joke.

No more wondering if the other Protectors would take some sort of pity on her and let her back.

No more thinking that demons were solely the enemy. If she wanted to "understand" them, she had to open up her perspective of them.

There was so much to do.

Melody spent the rest of the day scouring the city for any available housing. Once she found a nice apartment in the heart of the city, she decided to stroll around until she needed to go back to sleep. As a Protector, she only needed to sleep occasionally, but she decided that she would need the strength. While she ambled the city, she suddenly realized that the only way to understand a demon was to interact with one.

Which meant that she had to summon one. She had to make a contract, the very thing the Protectors were against.

She was horrified at even thinking of summoning, but she slowly started to understand that it was the only way. Father had probably even expected this. Besides, should the demon attack, she could easily slay it.

It was nighttime by then, and she was the only one in the empty street. "Ok, I need a demon. How do I get one to come to me?" she pondered, still feeling revolted at the act she was about to commit.

Just as this thought formed in her mind, a black panther appeared in front of her. Her first instinct, fully aware of its true form, was to grab her weapons and assume a fighting stance. However, she put on a grim smile, took some deep breaths, and spoke to the panther,

"I know what you are. I want to contract with you."

She blinked and, where the panther was moments before, a man roughly six feet tall with spiky black hair and piercing brown eyes stood in front of her. No, not man. He was a beast.

The demon was looking at her with a disturbingly hungry look and her skin crawled.

He was silent for a few moments, but responded, still relentlessly staring, "That saves a lot of the formalities. Of course, you still haven't told me your wish. What will it be? Fame? Fortune? Love?" He said the last word with a twisted smile.

"To learn about demons." She said bluntly.

A hint of surprise tinted his face. "Well, I've never heard that one before. Why should you contract just to learn about our species?"

"I can't just learn. I need to experience what it's like. It's long story, and so long as you serve me, you have no right to question my motives." She glared at him, daring him to challenge her.

A small smirk appeared. "Very well. Let's not waste anytime shall we?"

He lunged forward, and before she had time to react, he had fastened his grip on her right forearm. Suddenly, a burning sensation enveloped the area, and she let out a small cry in pain and shock. After a few moments, it receded and he released her arm. She saw a black brand right where his hand had been. She examined it, a mixture of defeat and revulsion on her face. She looked up at him. "I'm assuming this is when I give you a name."

The fiend gave a small nod. She thought for a few seconds and a small grin appeared, one of the only times that he would ever see it.

"I'm going to call you Peter. One of the most famous saints and closest disciples to Jesus himself. The one who saw him walk on water, heal the sick, and had his feet washed. The name fits you perfectly, does it not Peter?" she said cheerily, the irony dripping from her voice.

"Of course my lady. I vow never to leave your side until your mission is complete." He bowed to her, with one arm crossed over his heart.

Melody chuckled, and together she and her new companion walked side-by-side back to her apartment.

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**Sorry for the short chapter! It was just to give some background info. Everything else will be explained in time (or will it? I still don't know if I'll continue). I found out that it takes a LOT more time to write than I thought it would. Reviews are, once again, appreciated.**


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